The Gift
by Chatte D'Ange
Summary: AU. I wanted to give all my lovely reviewers a Christmas present, and what better way than to introduce a new storyline and let them decide where it goes? Plot bunny: What if the Allspark were a person? Things would get really interesting, that's what.
1. Life

_As I look back over the past year and a half, it strikes me just how appropriate it is that now, in the dead of winter, when everything is cold and dormant, is when we celebrate giving—the giving of life, and the reason for life itself._


	2. Awakening

Awakening

The first thing I feel is pain. It's an ache that emanates out from my very soul and paralyzes my new, still-forming limbs. I have been watching for eons, but now I am _aware_. Aware of the destruction around me. Aware of what has been destroyed before. Of those who have fought and valiantly given their lives to stop the destruction, and those who were left behind in the aftermath.

I am aware of the sorrow and the hopelessness and the desperation that surround me now. They pound through me like the steps of the being carrying me pound the surface beneath its feet. Millennia worth of pain hits me in waves in a matter of a few seconds, and I nearly go numb again. _No. I must know what happens._

A new, physical ache courses through me and distracts me momentarily. I cannot shed the tight, compact shell that binds me, and I am growing rapidly, pressing against the walls of my tiny prison.

Each jolting step up slams my already cramped body against the hard metal casing cocooning my form. Much bigger, and I will no longer have room to grow.

The desperate being carrying me stops its ascent. The evil presence that has been chasing us is close now, so close it scares me. _What does it want with us? What purpose could two such tiny being serve for this monster?_

I feel the hopes of the desperate being rise again, oh so rapidly, only to fall twice as fast as the lives that have barely come to my awareness are snuffed out. These do not even have time to flicker.

I fight back a new wave of pain, and the feeling of helplessness that goes along with it. I must make use of what abilities I have now if I am to be of any help when I am at full power.

I pray that my next growth spurt will be fast enough to break the case so that I can help, instead of being crushed before I am actually born. In the mean time (ignoring the second option), I turn my attention to the evil being in hopes of finding a shred of good I can coax out, or at least a weakness to exploit.

What I do find makes me shudder and cringe as far away from the evil presence as my blasted shell will let me. It is the leader of the destruction.

And I am the reason it destroys.

All at once, the desperate one is falling, and I with it. A noble presence joins us, filling me with the wonderful thing called hope, and I could dance for joy if I had the room.

There is a rough, painful series of jolts as the three of us hit hard, followed closely by the evil being. My two protectors shake off the blow and rise. I can feel the connection between them now.

Air enters my shell through the tiniest of cracks, and I use it for my first gasp as the evil presence turns to the noble one.

Evil and true nobility incarnate face off, and I want to cry. The evil one would kill this one too, as it killed the presence that I registered warmth from before I became aware. It seeks to destroy all of my smaller protector's kind, and it must be rid of this one to do so. So many lives that will be destroyed before I can even sense them. Before they can really mean something to me. I shall not allow it.

I beat the crack in my shell, praying it will widen and possibly shatter. No such luck.

I turn my attention back to the brawl, helpless in my weak state. Wait. Perhaps not so helpless. I'm too busy praying for the noble one to win to notice that my little protector (funny, coming from someone less than a tenth his size) has taken refuge, much less register the massive influx of knowledge from and about my surroundings or the fact that my awareness has grown to a larger area.

I employ a few words from my new vocabulary when the noble (Optimus Prime, as I now know he is called) falls, along with the spirit of my brave carrier, whom I now know as Sam.

I feel Sam's shock at what Optimus is suggesting, and I barely have time to utter a prayer for an alternative as Sam moves forward. I am not afraid to die, even though I have barely begun to live, but Optimus should not have to.

The evil being—Megatron—comes back into my growing sensory range, and my heart sings as I try to decide whether to cheer or cry as Sam changes directions. My prison bursts when Sam slams it into Megatron's spark, and the resulting energy release feeds my rapid growth to the size of a human. Well, a rather tall one.

No longer encumbered by that blasted shell, I sense the other approaching warriors before I see them. One is a crotchety (hm, interesting word) doctor, and the other is obsessed with weapons.

I turn my eyes to look at them, and my very first urge to chuckle dies as I realize what they are carrying. It is the two halves of the empty shell that was a loved one—the warm one, Jazz.

Sam and Optimus are so busy staring at me that they barely notice their friends. I ignore them for a little while as I float over to Ratchet and Ironhide. Instinctively, I raise my hands, and they begin to glow with a soft white light—as do the two halves of Jazz's body.

My first spoken words are "Let go of him, please." They do, and Jazz stays afloat. I move my hands together slowly, and intertwine my fingers. Jazz'z body moves back together and mends itself.

I smack the heels of my palms together, and a white-hot pinpoint begins to form in the cavity of my folded hands. I bring my hands slowly apart, half astonished at what I'm doing.

I feel the life, the presence that had disappeared all too soon from the universe pulsing out from the light in my hands, and it dawns on me that somehow, I've brought Jazz back. My eyes fly open wide as tears start to form in them. I bring the spark that is Jazz close to my chest, getting as close as you can to hugging a spark and bathing in the courageous, comforting presence. A tear falls from my eye onto the spark, making it flare, and I remember what I'm doing.

Cupping Jazz's spark in one hand, still close to my chest, I use the other to command Jazz's spark chamber to open. Then I plunge Jazz's spark into his chest with both hands. Jazz's chest armor closes of its own accord as I gently lower him to the ground, into the waiting circle of friends below us.

Now they're _all_ staring at me.

Jazz speaks up, saving me from saying anything. "What the _scrap_ is going on here?"

The others turn their astonished attention to him, and I'm free to fly up and survey the damage, hiding the tears that flow freely down my face at hearing the voice I thought I would never get to hear.

Knowledge rushes to me, and I slap my hands together in front of me, sending a wave of healing power over the city and its inhabitants

Buildings are restored, the injured are healed (including the poor legless Bumblebee—I send some extra power his way to finish healing his voice), and the dead are brought back to life. Even the Decepticons and those at the Dam and on the highway get to their feet on undamaged ground. The evil auras are gone from the Decepticons, boggling my suddenly tired mind. Channeling my power just to the areas where Transformers damage was done was harder than I thought it would be.

Whatever. I'll figure it out when my brain doesn't hurt so much. Preferably tomorrow.

I float back down and poke Jazz on the shoulder before I land on it, making him jump. I try to say I'm glad he's back, but a yawn interrupts my sentence about two words in. He chuckles, picking me up from his shoulder and tucking me into the crook of his elbow. A feeling that's been growing since I brought his spark back makes itself known and befuddles my poor mind even more.

Yeah, I'll definitely be figuring the Decepticon thing out tomorrow. Hey, even the Allspark has her limits. Even one powered (and guided) by the _un_limited Source.


	3. Faith

_Yet life is not the greatest thing we have been given, I realize as I look around at my friends. Life would be worth nothing if we did not have friends who trusted us, who had faith in us, even when they were not so sure they could believe us._


	4. Friends

Friends

The lonely look on Starscream's face just about makes me cry. I'd learned of the Transformers' inability to sense auras almost as soon as the former Decepticons made contact with the Autobots. Not for the first time, I lament that the Autobots cannot sense the change in their auras as I can. They have been granted sanctuary here in the Autobots' new base, as I have, but it was reluctantly and grudgingly granted.

I don't dare attempt to endorse them further, though. All of the Transformers are in awe of—and slightly fearful of—me, and tread carefully around me. Even Jazz—after he discovered just what I am, all too soon for my taste—has become distant and deferential. The warm bond that had started to form between us in that brief time tightened, grew cold, and cut. All I find when I reach out to him now is a wall.

But I'm getting off topic. I can't push further because I want the friendship between the sides to be genuine, not forced to please someone they are afraid of. I fear I may have already done damage to that possibility when I pushed so hard to give the Decepitcons sanctuary.

I turn away from the commons area, which had grown incredibly tense when I walked in. I stalk down the hall, fuming as I remember what happened when the latest group arrived. I'd just started to make friends with a pair of triplechangers named Springer and Shadowstar when Prowl had walked in, and whispered in their audios that I was the Allspark. They blanched, and started tripping over themselves in their awkward reverence.

I could have smacked Prowl. That's the third time he's done that. I keep trying to show them there's a person behind the power, one that needs friends as much as the next person, but it just doesn't take. So I decided that I would greet the new recruits and have my friendships firmly established before the Autobots found them and told them what I was. Ha. Fat chance.

I swear to myself as I walk down the hall that as soon as I figure out how to plant sparklings and Prowl's lover makes himself known, Prowl gets quadruplets.

The Transformers are hermaphrodites, by the way. Femmes are an anomaly that happens when a spark is abnormally large. The male part doesn't form on the sparkling's body, and a femme has the ability to have children without me within a certain range, for which I am grateful. Transformers probably would have died out by now if they didn't exist, as I was on Earth for so many millennia.

"Hey, Allie, why the long face?" Mikaela asks. "Don't tell me Prowl did it again."

"Yup. I swear, as soon as I see an opening, he gets quadruplets! Or maybe quintuplets. Depends on how mad I am at that point." I smack my fist to my palm. "I know he has a lover here. It's only a matter of time before they go nutty. Then I strike."

Mikaela chuckles, and I send up a silent prayer of thanks for her and the other humans. They are my sanity. With them, I'm not just the Allspark, source of life for the Transformers, I'm also Allie, Sparky, Glitter—a person, someone, not something. And I am not feared.

I also pray that Prowl and Optimus never find out about my friendship with them, because I would never see them again if they did. Somehow, the two of them have gotten it into their heads that a sapient Allspark is dangerous. Don't ask me why, because I really don't know.

I do a quick scan of the area, then duck into the human lounge with Mikaela. Sam, Maggie, Maria, Tawni, Red, Sean, and Alex are all already there, arguing over whether to do a Simpsons marathon or an I Love Lucy marathon. Well, Sam's just laughing as he watches the others waste all their popcorn dumping it over each other's heads. Sean pipes up, "Hey Sparky, Mikaela, which one—Simpsons or Lucy?"

Mikaela and I look at each other and stifle a giggle. Our reply comes in unison. "Lucy, duh!"

Sean and Alex groan, and Red just shrugs. "HA! Outvoted, Sean! Lucy it is!" Tawni crows. The two of them are forever fighting over something. I'm pretty sure Sean likes her, but Tawni just thinks he's a weirdo. Poor Sean.

We're halfway through the episode where Lucy pretends to be the Maharincess of Franistan when Jazz peeks in. I was so absorbed, I didn't sense him coming.

"Hey, Sam, Bee wants—" Jazz stops midsentence when he sees me sitting there with a box of Crackerjacks, frozen in place.

"—to talk to me," Sam finishes, completely oblivious to the massive pause in between. Males can be so dense sometimes. "Alright." Sam gets up and walks out the door past Jazz, who is still trying to process what he sees.

"Uh, A-Allspark?"

"Yeah."

"Er . . ."

"Yes, I know Prowl is trying to find me. You ever heard of the concept of avoiding someone?"

Jazz just blinks at me.

I sigh. "Guys, you mind pausing it for a while?"

"Naw, I'll just bust out Apples to Apples for a little while," Maria says.

"Cool." I walk out into the hall with Jazz, closing the door behind me.

We move in silence for a little while. "Um, doesn't it . . ."

"Doesn't it what?"

He just gives me the strange look he's given me the past couple of months. It dawns on me that it's the same look I've given him.

I float up so I can look him in the optics. "Doesn't it bother me that they are tripping over themselves trying not to make me mad? That they aren't going out of their way to make me feel high and mighty and special? No."

His optics widen in shock, though whether it's at my answer or at my wording I don't bother to find out. I plow on, suddenly desperate to get out what I need to say while I've got the chance. "In fact, it drives me nuts when you guys do it. I hate being treated like I'm made out of glass that will shatter at the slightest touch, or a bomb that will go off at the slightest disturbance. I will _not_ blast you all to kingdom come if someone doesn't agree with me or makes me mad, though I might argue with you or throw something at you. But isn't that what you all do in the first place? Seriously, I'm getting tired of being treated like a volatile, self-centered deity when all I am is a normal sapient person with a couple of extra powers!"

I feel a crack begin to form in the wall, and I nearly cry.

"Jeez, I . . . I didn't know you felt that way."

"Well, now you do. And I would appreciate it if you'd spread the word." I head back toward the lounge, and Jazz heads in the direction of the commons, a smile on his face.

I pause as I feel something foreign, and new knowledge enters my head. I make use of it, then I turn and call out behind me. "Oh, yeah. Don't be surprised if Prowl ends up with quadruplets soon!"

Jazz howls with laughter, leaning against the wall for support, as I enter the lounge and close the door behind me.

* * *

So, whatcha think so far? Any suggestions? Any dynamics you want played up, or characters I could add? Review, please! And no, I'm not done. 


	5. Hope

_And how could we have faith if we did not have hope? Hope is the one thing that can keep us going when life fails us and our faith is waivering and shrinking. And what brings hope better than a new life?_


	6. Rebirth

A/N: The former Decepticons I use in my story look like the ones from Armada.

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers, nor have I at any point in the story. Allie, Shadowstar, Tightwind, Harpy, Whitehat, Darkwind, Alex, Maria, Tawni, Janice, Mikah, Hailey, Red, and Sean are all mine.

* * *

I bury my face in Jazz's back to stifle my laughing fit. The look on Prowl's face was absolutely beautiful. Not to mention priceless. I felt Jazz shake a couple of times before he got himself under control. We're currently in Ratchet's medbay, "we" being the humans (including Glen), Jazz, Optimus, and (of course) Ratchet and me. I can feel the confusion from the others. I decided it would be best if I kept the source of Prowl's "condition" between Jazz and me.

I send up a silent prayer of thanks for the warm bond that's rebuilt itself between us. I needed this friendship badly, and it had begun to wear me down. I didn't realize how badly I'd neglected my own emotional health until it had begun to repair.

Ratchet has insisted that we wait for the latest watch to come in before he'll announce the news. I can tell from the pained expression on Prowl's face that he is not happy that the Twins will be among the first to hear it. Hm. They did change the watch recently, and I haven't come across Prowl's lover's energy signature since the night they spark-bonded. Of course, I _have_ been rather distracted lately, watching over the tentative bonds formed between some of the newer humans and a couple of the Decepticons-turned-Autobots, so it would be easy for me to have missed him. I didn't even think to get his name. I'll bet he's on this watch, and that's why Ratchet's postponing the big announcement. I hope he likes sparklings. Urgh. Should've thought of that, too. Oh, well. Too late now.

I turn my attention to the entrance where the current watch should be reentering the base soon. Starscream is the first one back in, with his human friend Janice perched on his shoulder in full winter regalia. They're deep into some conversation, Starscream nodding his head and laughing softly at something Janice whispered into his audio. I tune them out, giving them their privacy even though I'm curious as to what they're saying. It's best if I let this relationship go where it will, with no meddling from me (unless someone on the outside tries to break it up). Although at this rate, I might need to do something about the Transformer-human compatability issue. The last time I took a poke at their bond, it was nearly at spark-mate level.

I scan Janice to see if there's something I can work with--and nearly fall off my perch on Jazz's back. Maybe I won't need to. Looks like the Big Guy Himself took matters into His own hands. Things could get interesting at the humans' monthly checkups this afternoon.

Scratch bothering the Twins by making their pranks backfire on them, I am SO going to be here. The look on Ratchet's face is going to be _priceless_.

Speak of the Twin devils. Sideswipe and Shadowstar are next in, followed closely by a very aggravated and confused Sunstreaker. Huhn. Well, Sides and Star are definitely crushing on each other. I can tell by the looks on their faces as they talk to each other. That shouldn't be a problem, though. Sunny's never had an issue with Sides having a romantic relationship.

I turn my senses to Sunny, hoping to find an answer. What I find makes me nearly fall off Jazz's back again. Jazz turns to give me a weird look, but I just signal that I'll explain later. The vibes between Sunny and Star have gone from just plain friendly to _intense_ in a matter of--good grief, less than a week?--and the two of them are fighting it for all they're worth. Okay.

I hop up onto Jazz's shoulder, ignoring the nervous look from Prowl. I check the bond between Sides and Star again, this time probing deeper. The amount of warmth and affection there startle me. I frown as I try to process what I've discovered. Both bonds have the makings of permanence. I realize that I've been frowning in Optimus' direction when he raises an optic ridge at me. I transmit, **"Not you, the Twins,"** as I send a "What gives?" in the direction of the being the humans know as El-Shaddai.

I grin when I remember that the Twins are formed from a split spark. Of course. You have to have a whole spark on both sides to manage a spark-bond. Also . . . I nearly bust out laughing. Shadowstar is a triplechanger, and some triplechangers have a double-link capability. Shadowstar happens to be one of them, although he hasn't figured it out yet. Yeah, Elohim definitely knows what He's doing.

The final person comes in from the watch, and I nearly faint from relief. It's Hardcore, and his signature matches Prowl's sparkmate's exactly. From what I've heard, loves sparklings and even helped raise a couple of orphans. All that worry for nothing.

Optimus gets the transmit that is back in, and Ratchet and Prowl both tell Hardcore to**"Get your rear fender in here now!"** Of course, when Hardcore takes off at a sprint, the Twins are naturally curious, and drag a hapless Shadowstar with them as they run for the medbay. Perceptor, Hound, Skyfire, Arcee, Mirage and newcomers Beachcomber, Tightwind, Harpy, and Whitehat are all in the commons when the foursome rushes past and, after exchanging looks, take off after them. Starscream sees the massive entourage headed for the medbay and radios for Blackout, Barricade, Frenzy, and Megatron (who, by the way, changed his name to Darkwind) to grab their humans and head for the medbay.

By the time the change-of-hearts get there, the other Autobots have crammed into the medbay behind me, Jazz, Optimus, and the other humans, Hardcore having joined Prowl on the exam table, an arm around Prowl's shoulder and a worried look on his face.

Ratchet looks at the huge group and at Darkwind and the others standing in the doorway, human friends perched on their shoulders (or, in Frenzy's case, sitting beside him on Barricade's shoulder), and sighs. "Hardcore, don't look at me like that. Prowl is going to be fine. And, as long as my scanners are working properly, so should all those sparklings." The last comment is directed at me. I nod. There's no way I'd mess with his scanners when someone's health is at stake.

Prowl's head whips around. "_All those_ sparklings?" He looks like he's going to faint. I bury my face in Jazz's neck to muffle another laughing fit. "Exactly how many?"

"Four."

Prowl colapses back into Hardcore's arms, his expression warring between happiness and trepidation. Hardcore looks like he's died and gone to heaven as the cheers that had started with Ratchet's announcement reach deafening proportions.

I can't help it anymore. I laugh as I cheer with the others. I have never been so happy in my entire life.

Ratchet decides to start the humans' checkups early, since most of them are here. Janice volunteers to go first. "I've been feeling a little tired, and I threw up this morning." Starscream looks at her with startled optics. Apparently this is news to him.

Mikah and Hailey pipe up in unison. "You too, huh?" Barricade and Darkwind look at their partners with a repeat of Starscream's expression. I scan Mikah and Hailey, and their condition matches Janice's exactly. My mouth twitches as I try to keep my grin from spreading too far.

Ratchet mutters something about an epidemic, signaling for Barricade and Darkwind to bring their partners to the exam table with Starscream. Ratchet scans Janice first. His optics widen, and he scans her again, then three more times. Ratchet stands there, trying to process, then moves hesitantly to Mikah. He scans her three times, then practically speed-scans Hailey twice. Then he slowly turns his head to stare at me, shaking slightly. I grin right back, slowly shaking my head. I mouth, "Not me, Him," pointing upward. Ratchet faints.

Now everyone's staring at me, and I roll my eyes as I stand up on Jazz's shoulder. "Okay, first and foremost, this was not my doing. It was God. Second, you three over there"--I guesture to Darkwind, Starscream, and Barricade--"can stop staring at me like I've killed your sparklings and made you watch. Your partners do not have some kind of dread illness, and your sparklings are perfectly healthy."

Jazz stares at me. "Are you saying--"

"Yes, Janice, Mikah, and Hailey are pregnant. With their sparklings. Don't ask me how He did it, 'cause I really don't know." I grin. "Looks like we're going to have a Mini-Bot baby boom."

Hailey lets out a whoop and launches herself at Darkwind, who barely catched her as he tries to process. Janice hugs Starscream around the neck as best she can as they both cry happy tears. Barricade and Mikah just stare at each other, trying to figure out what their reaction should be.

The cheers start again, twice as loud as before. A couple of the Autobots even start hugging the change-of-hearts in their enthusiasm. It's not much, but it's a start.

Jazz squeezes through the crowd to the medbay doors with me still on his shoulder, then makes his way down the hall and outside. Snow is falling, and it's November 22nd, the day before Thanksgiving this year. Jazz looks up at the cloud-covered sky. "Ya know, we're gonna have a lotta things to celebrate tomorrow, and it's all thanks ta you."

"Thanks to me nothing. It's thanks to God. The timing on me busting out of my shell, the amount of power it took to heal the city, the former 'Cons' relationships with the humans, none of that would have been possible without outside help. As much power as I have, I do have limits. Even Prowl's quadruplets wouldn't have taken if I hadn't been granted that power in the first place. But you're right, we do have a lot to be thankful for. We just need to make sure we thank the right person."

"True. Then Ah guess Ah need ta thank Him for you being a person, cuz Ah don't know what Ah'd do without ya, now."

Tears blur my vision, and I wrap my arms around his neck as far as they'll go. I really need to work on my transforming abilities. "Me too, Jazz. Me too."

* * *

Can you guess where this is headed? Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Suggestions on what I can do with the TwinsxShadowstar situation? I need ideas, people! Review, please.

Oh, yeah. Should I do an actual series with these characters? Fill in gaps and stuff?


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